Naruto: Echoes of a Distant Home

The stalemate would finally shift with Sasori's arrival.

"He's finally here…" Ye Zi's eyes brightened slightly. Part of him had hoped to finish off Sakumo alone before Sasori arrived, but he hadn't expected their battle to end in a stalemate where neither could gain the upper hand.

No matter. With Sasori here, this balance would soon tip in his favor.

Sakumo's expression grew serious as he noticed Sasori's arrival. Dealing with Ye Zi alone was challenging enough, but with an Akatsuki core member added to the mix, he'd soon be at a disadvantage.

If defeating Ye Zi wasn't possible in a short time, he'd focus on taking Sasori down first.

With this thought, Sakumo unleashed an invisible blade from his White Fang, pushing Ye Zi back momentarily. Then he leapt backward, quickly forming seals, and in the next instant appeared behind Sasori.

Positioned at a slight angle, his elbow bent in front of him, Sakumo's sharp eyes locked onto Sasori's neck, and White Fang came slicing down with lightning speed.

"White Fang!"

Without looking back, Sasori, filled with hatred, swung his scorpion tail at Sakumo. Remaining calm, Sakumo twisted his body into a swift rotation, spinning five times in an instant, unleashing a flurry of miniature wind blades that enveloped Sasori's tail and body.

Sasori's expression changed as his puppet armor, Hiruko, splintered under the relentless assault, with fragments of his tail scattering around. His fingers moved slightly, and the Third Kazekage puppet emerged from his side, shooting a barrage of poison needles at Sakumo.

These mechanisms were less powerful than typical jutsu, but faster.

With his first strike landed and the needles approaching, Sakumo retreated without hesitation, dodging the poisonous attack.

In that instant, Ye Zi, moving nearly as fast as Sakumo, appeared behind him, taking advantage of the moment when Sakumo had been focused on attacking Sasori.

The blade Chijin with its reddish tint, struck forward in a direct stab—simple but swift.

Clang!

Yet Sakumo managed to turn and deflect the thrust with White Fang, redirecting it to the side.

That was the power of experience; though he hadn't tracked Ye Zi's movements directly, Sakumo had anticipated an attack from behind and was prepared.

After diverting the strike, Sakumo stepped forward, his short sword sparking against Chijin as he pressed close. When White Fang reached Ye Zi's guard, he deftly angled it away, aiming for Ye Zi's heart.

As White Fang moved away from Chijin, the pressure it had exerted vanished. Calmly, Ye Zi released his grip on the blade and delivered a swift kick to Sakumo's abdomen.

Sakumo, unfazed, blocked with his free hand while White Fang continued its trajectory.

Thud!

Ye Zi's kick landed squarely on Sakumo's palm, forcing him backward. Ye Zi then reached down and reclaimed Chijin as it fell.

Rip.

Ye Zi's chest armor was slightly torn near the heart, exposing an intact undershirt beneath.

"Missed by a bit…"

Sakumo's gaze quickly left the torn area, and he took a leap back to avoid the iron sand spike Sasori had launched from the Third Kazekage puppet.

With Hiruko's back half shattered by Sakumo's strikes, Sasori abandoned it, emerging from within—a red-haired, youthful figure.

Though this was Ye Zi's first time seeing Sasori's true appearance, there was no time to dwell on it during the heat of battle.

Lightning Release: Sharp Spear!

With lightning swirling in his hand, Ye Zi aimed two fingers at Sakumo, who was airborne after dodging Sasori's attack. A bolt of concentrated lightning shot from his fingertips.

Sakumo glanced sideways, raised his arm, and slashed through the lightning bolt, dispersing it into harmless energy.

He can even cut lightning...

Ye Zi hadn't expected this attack to injure Sakumo but had aimed to create an opening for Sasori. He hadn't anticipated Sakumo could disperse the attack so effortlessly.

After deflecting the lightning spear, Sakumo landed smoothly—only for a massive shadow to appear above him as a huge black iron block descended from the sky.

Sakumo glanced up, his eyes narrowing, his small figure swallowed in the shadow of the heavy block.

"Did it work?" Sasori asked emotionlessly as he watched.

Shing…

Before he could finish, a blade's gleam flashed atop the iron block, like a fleeting meteor.

The massive iron block, fused from chakra and magnetic iron sand, split into two before Sasori's shocked eyes.

"Impossible…"

As the block split, Sakumo dashed through the opening, heading straight for Sasori.

Sasori swung his arm, positioning the Kazekage puppet to block Sakumo's path.

Iron Sand Drizzle!

A swarm of iron sand condensed and fired forward in a hail of projectiles. This was Magnet Release's fastest attack.

Sakumo created a bladed shield in front of him, deflecting the iron sand.

Seeing this, Sasori grew more serious, pulling the Kazekage puppet back to his side. He launched more spiked projectiles, surrounding Sakumo from all angles.

"Is his goal to eliminate Sasori first?" Ye Zi noted coldly, watching Sakumo's back.

With spikes approaching from all sides, Sakumo spun rapidly, deflecting them as they closed in.

Watching this, Sasori realized the Third Kazekage puppet alone couldn't withstand Sakumo's relentless attacks. That short sword seemed capable of slicing through all his defenses.

"Ye Zi, hold him off for a moment!"

Sasori concealed himself in a thick cloud of poison mist, blocking Sakumo's view.

Unfazed by the poison, Sakumo prepared to use an invisible blade to cut through the mist, but he felt a subtle tremor beneath him. Though uncertain of what was coming, he shifted cautiously to the side, abandoning his assault on Sasori.

At that moment, a massive tree root burst from the ground, missing its mark.

"Not even a sensory type, yet he dodges so precisely," Ye Zi muttered, clenching his teeth. He gripped "Blood" tightly, thrusting it into the ground as his hands performed rapid seals.

An enormous number of roots erupted from the ground around Sakumo, shooting into the air before descending on him in a 180-degree blockade.

Sakumo glanced at the encircling roots, jumping back swiftly to evade the surging mass.

Compared to the massive roots, Sakumo's small figure seemed insignificant, but he remained poised.

Swinging White Fang, he unleashed invisible strikes that severed the approaching roots, escaping the reach of Ye Zi's Wood Release with ease.

"If I can't take down the puppet master quickly, I'll be at a disadvantage as my chakra dwindles," Sakumo thought. Prolonged chakra use with no gains would put him at risk.

Ye Zi watched with a frown as Sakumo retreated.

"With that speed and his blade, Wood Release alone won't be enough to catch him. Even my faster lightning attacks can be cut apart. No matter—the goal is to give Sasori enough time."

By the time Sakumo backed off, Sasori had completed his preparations.

Countless thin chakra threads extended from an open compartment on Sasori's chest, connecting to a host of puppets clad in red cloaks.

A total of 198 puppets hovered in the air, creating a vast and intimidating sight.

"Secret Red Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets…"

Sasori's icy gaze settled on Sakumo.

Ye Zi scoffed, watching the puppets fill the sky. "Not bad, this was worth the chakra I used to buy him time."

Sakumo looked up at the sea of puppets with a calm expression.

"This is the first time I've seen a puppet master control so many puppets at once."

He recalled his past encounters with Sand shinobi during the Second Shinobi War. Though he had faced many puppet masters, none had controlled more than ten at a time. Now, nearly two hundred puppets filled the sky in a truly formidable display.

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Currently on Chapter 375 - Fantasies Among a Harsh Reality